2018 Employment Law & Legislative Conference

Keynote Speakers

  • Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., SHRM-SCP

    Johnny C.
    Taylor, Jr., SHRM-SCP

    Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., SHRM-SCP, is President and Chief Executive Officer of SHRM. With nearly 325,000 members in 165 countries, SHRM impacts the lives of more than 235 million workers and families globally.

     As a global leader on the future of employment, culture and leadership, Mr. Taylor is a sought-after voice on all matters affecting work, workers, and the workplace. Recently named one of the “Most Influential People Shaping Public Policy” in our nation’s Capital by the Washingtonian Magazine, Mr. Taylor is frequently asked to testify before Congress on critical workforce issues and authors the weekly USA Today column, "Ask HR."

     Mr. Taylor's career spans over 20 years as a lawyer, human resources executive and CEO in both the not-for-profit and for-profit space. He has held senior and chief executive roles at IAC/Interactive Corp, Viacom's Paramount Pictures, Blockbuster Entertainment Group, the McGuireWoods law firm, and Compass Group USA. Most recently, Mr. Taylor was President and Chief Executive Officer of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund.

     He is the author of the national bestseller, RESET: A Leader’s Guide to Work in an Age of Upheaval, which delivers a candid and forward-thinking vision for leaders to reimagine their company cultures in a time of global upheaval and presents data-driven strategies to make the necessary foundational reset of all things work. Immediately upon its release in September 2021, RESET was in the top three of the Wall Street Journal’s list of best-selling hardcover business books. All author proceeds benefit the SHRM Foundation, which is committed to empowering HR as a social force for change.

     He was appointed chairman of the President’s Advisory Board on Historically Black Colleges and Universities and served as a member of the White House American Workforce Policy Advisory Board during the Trump Administration. He is Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees of the University of Miami, Independent Director of the Flores & Associates corporate board and member of the corporate boards of Guild Education and XPO Logistics (NYSE: XPO).

     The Women Business Collaborative (WBC) named Mr. Taylor as one of its 2023 Trailblazers in Gender Equity and Diversity for his work to achieve equal position, pay and power for all women in business. In 2020, he received the Distinguished Executive of the Year Award from the Academy of Management, and he was named 2021 ALA Professional Society CEO of the Year by CEO Update

    He is a Fellow of the National Academy of Human Resources and is licensed to practice law in Florida, Illinois and Washington, D.C.

     

    Michael P. Aitken

    Michael P.
    Aitken

    Mike Aitken has worked at SHRM since 2003 and currently serves as the Senior Vice President of Government Affairs. Prior to joining SHRM, he served for 14 years as associate director for Governmental and External Relations at the College and University Professional Association for Human Resources (CUPA-HR). Previously, Aitken worked on state public policy issues at Bonner & Associates, a public affairs firm in Washington, DC. Currently, he is based in Alexandria, VA.

     

  • Jonathan A. Segal

    Jonathan A.
    Segal

    Jonathan is a partner at Duane Morris LLP in its Employment Group.  He also is the Founder and managing principal of the Duane Morris Institute, which provides training on employment issues to HR professionals, in-house counsel and other leaders.

    The core of Jonathan’s practice is helping employers maximize legal compliance and minimize legal risk with regard to harassment, discrimination, retaliation and reasonable accommodations.
    Over the past few years, Jonathan has focused on religion in general and antisemitism in particular. In addition to helping clients, Jonathan has delivered a number of talks on antisemitism on behalf of the EEOC as well as to field directors of the EEOC.
     
    Jonathan has provided training to federal judges and other members of the federal judiciary on various employment issues for more than 20 years.

     

    Victoria Lipnic

    Victoria
    Lipnic

    Victoria A. Lipnic is a Partner at Resolution Economics. She leads the Company’s Human Capital Strategy Group. The Human Capital Strategy Group combines the Company’s expertise in data analytics and deep knowledge of regulatory requirements with an interdisciplinary approach to advise organizations on the full range of their human capital needs and reporting requirements including recruitment, selection, promotions, DE&I, pay equity, and ESG, especially as to equal employment opportunity and anti-discrimination issues.

    Ms. Lipnic joined Resolution Economics in 2021. She has broad experience in the full range of human capital, labor and employment issues, especially from the regulatory enforcement perspective. Prior to joining the Company she served as Commissioner of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) from 2010 to 2020 and Acting Chair from 2017 to 2019. She was appointed to the EEOC by President Barack Obama and confirmed by unanimous consent by the U.S. Senate. At the EEOC she worked on policy, cases, and regulations falling under all of the statutes enforced by the Commission including Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the Equal Pay Act (EPA), the Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA) and the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA). While at the EEOC she participated in numerous agency regulatory initiatives including the final GINA regulations, the ADA, as amended, regulations, and the revisions to the EEO-1 form to include pay data reporting. She organized the agency’s first public meeting on Big Data in Employment, created its Chief Data Officer position, oversaw development of the Office of Enterprise Data and Analytics and published a significant report on age discrimination. She co-chaired the EEOC’s Select Task Force on the Study of Harassment in the Workplace, and co-authored its seminal report, issued in 2016, before the #MeToo movement. Prior to the EEOC, she practiced law with Seyfarth Shaw.  She also served as Assistant Secretary of Labor for Employment Standards from 2002-2008, appointed by President George W. Bush, where, among other regulatory enforcement agencies, she oversaw the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs and the Wage and Hour Division. In 2021-22 she chaired the Artificial Intelligence – Technical Advisory Committee for the Institute for Workplace Equality.

  • Gloria Borger

    Gloria
    Borger
    Gloria Borger is CNN's chief political analyst, appearing regularly on The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer, The Lead with Jake Tapper and across the network's primetime programs. Borger plays an instrumental role in the network's daily coverage while reporting on a variety of political and breaking news stories, including the start of the 2016 presidential election, the 2014 midterm elections, the 2013 government shutdown, the investigation of the Boston Marathon bombing, and the hunt for Osama bin Laden. Borger also writes a regular column for CNN.com.
     
    In addition, Borger is the correspondent for an acclaimed series of in-depth specials, Gloria Borger Reports. As part of that series, Borger interviewed Vice President Joe Biden exclusively the day before the 2014 midterm elections, as well as a news-making interviews with former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, an in-depth report on presidential dynasties and wide-ranging profiles on political stars and characters as diverse as progressive Senator Elizabeth Warren (DMA) to the legendary former Louisiana Governor, Edwin Edwards. The pieces run across all CNN platforms, and add value to the network's daily coverage.
    Borger's long-form contributions to CNN also included the first extended post-election interview with GOP Presidential nominee Mitt Romney and his wife Ann Romney, as they candidly discussed the campaign. Borger also profiled House Budget chairman Representative Paul Ryan (R-WI) in 2012, before he became the GOP Vice Presidential nominee for Mitt Romney. Borger also interviewed Joe Biden exclusively prior to the second inauguration of President Obama.
     
    In 2012, Borger reported for CNN's 90-minute documentary on the life and career of Mitt Romney—his journey in politics and devotion to his Mormon faith. During this project, she traveled to France to report on Romney's missionary life and she conducted several in-depth interviews with Mitt Romney as well as his family.
     
    Borger received an “Emmy” nomination for her 2010 special for CNN, The Odd Couple, in which she interviewed powerhouse Washington attorneys David Boies and Ted Olson. The two partisan political opposites teamed up in an unlikely legal alliance in support of same-sex marriage against California's Proposition 8. Borger revisited the topic again in 2013 when their case in support of same-sex marriage was argued before the U.S. Supreme Court. The result was a 30-minute CNN special, Marriage Warriors: Showdown at the Supreme Court, which earned afirst place 2014 “National Headliner Award” and the 2014 “American Gavel Award” from the American Judges Association.
     
    Borger has been a prominent part of all recent CNN election coverage, and was pivotal to CNN's “Emmy” award-winning election night coverage in 2012. She also played a key roles in the network's political coverage for the 2010 midterm elections, as well as the historic “America Votes 2008” coverage, which earned CNN a “Peabody Award”.
     
    Before joining CNN in September 2007, Borger was CBS News' national political correspondent and a contributor to CBS's Face the Nation, 60 Minutes II and the network's special events coverage. From 2002 to 2004, she was the co-anchor of CNBC's Capital Report. Borger began her professional career as a reporter at The Washington Star where she covered politics and coauthored a daily serial, eventually published as a book, Federal Triangle, a parody of political life in Washington. Borger was a political columnist for U.S. News & World Report and chief congressional correspondent for Newsweek. Early in her career, Borger was awarded the Watson Traveling Fellowship to study the British press.
     
    Borger graduated from Colgate University in Hamilton, New York, where she has served on the board of trustees.
    Tuesday, March 13, 2018 - 8:00am to 9:00am
  • Donna Brazile

    Donna
    Brazile

    Veteran Democratic political strategist Donna Brazile is a Fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics, and Public Policy. She is the former interim Chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC), an adjunct professor at Georgetown University, and the author of the upcoming book Hacks: The Inside Story of the Break-ins and Breakdowns That Put Donald Trump in the White House. She is a former syndicated newspaper and magazine columnist, and the former Vice-Chair for civic engagement and voter participation at the DNC as well as the former Chair of the DNC’s Voting Rights Institute. Brazile is the founder and managing director of Brazile and Associates, LLC, a consulting, grassroots advocacy and training firm based in Washington, D.C. She was a fellow at Harvard’s Institute of Politics in 2001 and has lectured at more than 200 colleges and universities in the United States and abroad. While at the Shorenstein Center, Brazile will conduct research and write about understanding American democracy after the cyber-attack on the 2016 election. In her presentations, she addresses our current political environment, hot-topic legislation, campaigns, and voting.

    Brazile was named to O magazine’s first-ever list of 20 “remarkable visionaries.” Washingtonian magazine named her among its “100 Most Powerful Women,” while Essence magazine listed her as one of the “Top 50 Women in America.” The author of the best-selling memoir Cooking with Grease: Stirring the Pots in American Politics, she is also an on-air contributor to ABC, regularly appearing on This Week. She contributed to Essence magazine’s 2016 presidential coverage and to O, The Oprah magazine. Brazile has made three cameo appearances on CBS’s The Good Wife, appeared twice on Netflix’s House of Cards and, most recently, on BET’s Being Mary Jane. She received the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation’s highest award for political achievement and, in 2017, was a recipient of Harvard University’s prestigious W. E. B. Du Bois Medal—the university’s highest honor in the field of African and African American Studies.

    Brazile began her political career at the age of nine when she worked to elect a City Council candidate who had promised to build a playground in her neighborhood. The candidate won, the swing sets was installed, and a lifelong passion for politics was ignited. Four decades and innumerable state and local campaigns later, Brazile has worked on every presidential campaign from 1976 through 2000, when she served as campaign manager for former Vice President Al Gore, becoming the first African-American woman to manage a presidential campaign.

    She is currently on the board of the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board, the National Democratic Institute, the National Institute for Civil Discourse, Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, the BlackAmericaWeb.com Relief Fund, Inc. She also serves as co-chair for Democrats for Public Education.

    A native of New Orleans, Brazile was appointed by former Governor Kathleen Blanco to serve on the Louisiana Recovery Board to work for the rebuilding of the state and to advocate for the Gulf recovery on the national stage. Brazile was recently appointed by New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu to serve on the Tricenntinal Commission. Aside from working for the full recovery of her native New Orleans, Brazile’s passion is encouraging young people to vote, working within the political system in order to strengthen it, and running for public office.

    She is the proud recipient of honorary doctorate degrees from Louisiana State University, North Carolina A&T State University, Grambling State University, Morehouse School of Medicine, Northeastern Illinois University, Thomas Jefferson University, and Xavier University of Louisiana. 

    Sean Spicer

    Sean
    Spicer
    Everybody knows Sean Spicer. At least, polls show, they know his name and his trademark style behind the White House podium. But before the former White House Press Secretary made his mark as one of the most recognized staffers in the Trump administration, he built a decades-long career in Republican politics, witnessing and shaping the inner workings of Washington, DC, from every vantage point--as a House of Representatives communicator, Assistant U.S. Trade Representative, Republican National Committee chief strategist, top advisor to presidential campaigns, and, of course, White House spokesman. Few in Washington are as well-equipped as Sean to pull back the curtain and dissect what’s really happening in the nation’s capital.
     
    Sean is a lifelong Republican operative who worked his way up through the ranks and whom colleagues know as relentless, quick-witted and good-humored. Melissa McCarthy’s depiction of his press briefing performances earned him a spot in Saturday Night Live lore, but it was his role as the architect of the Republican National Committee’s PR strategy that earned him a reputation as one of the party’s most effective and hardest-charging strategists and communicators. He helped the party successfully rebuild following losses in the 2012 election, and he then played a key role in the strategy behind the party’s sweeping 2014 victories, the must-see 2016 primary debates and the party’s improbable wins across the country that November.
     
    Outside of politics, Sean serves as a commander in the U.S. Navy Reserve. A Rhode Island native and Connecticut College graduate, he also holds a master’s degree from the Naval War College. A husband and father of two, he resides in Virginia but remains a loyal fan of the Boston Red Sox.
    Monday, March 12, 2018 - 12:00pm to 1:30pm
  • Peter Sagal

    Peter
    Sagal

    As the host of National Public Radio’s Wait Wait … Don’t Tell Me!, Peter Sagal is heard by more than 3 million people every week, broadcast on 450 public radio stations nationwide and via a popular podcast. The show received the prestigious Peabody Award in 2008, the same year it celebrated its 10th Anniversary. The hour long show has captivated news junkies across the country with its lighthearted approach to current events, and has become the biggest and most beloved weekend radio phenomenon since A Prairie Home Companion.

    Each week, Sagal leads NPR veteran newscaster Carl Kasell and esteemed guest panelists like humorist Roy Blount Jr., comedians Paula Poundstone and Paul Provenza, media personality Mo Rocca and author P.J. O’Rourke through a satirical review of the week’s news in the form of a quiz. It’s a revival of You Bet Your Life crossbred with the irreverence of The Daily Show.

    Sagal is the host of PBS’ new series, Constitution USA with Peter Sagal. The show follows him as he travels across country—on a Harley Davison Road King—to find out where the Constitution lives, how it works, its history and its vital relevance today.

    Tuesday, March 13, 2018 - 4:00pm to 5:00pm